Monday Night Football

Just kidding.  Do you really think I watch football??  I come from a city with no football team, have only a sister, only girl cousins, went to a Division 2 school where the football stadium (at the time) was smaller than my high school football stadium, and have a father whose fave sport is baseball.  So no, I don't watch football.  The same cannot be said for my significant other.  Alas, he surrendered his rights to Monday Football and watched the season finale (from Netflix) of Dexter whilst feasting on Boeuf Bourguignon.

I could have spent hours upon hours making the "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" version, but that simply was not practical.  I have a toddler and do not have hours and hours to spare.  So I chose the Barefoot version which significantly reduces the time.  Since I've not tasted Julia's, I can't say which is better, but Ina's was DELISH.

Boeuf Bourguignon
Barefoot in Paris ~ serves 6 (enormous servings)

Ingredients
1 tablespoon good olive oil
8 ounces dry cured center cut applewood smoked bacon, diced
2 1/2 pounds chuck beef cut into 1-inch cubes
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 pound carrots, sliced diagonally into 1-inch chunks
2 yellow onions, sliced
2 teaspoons chopped garlic (2 cloves)
1/2 cup Cognac
1 (750 ml.) bottle good dry red wine such as Cote du Rhone or Pinot Noir
1 can (2 cups) beef broth
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (1/2 teaspoon dried)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature, divided
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 pound frozen whole onions
1 pound fresh mushrooms stems discarded, caps thickly sliced

For Serving
Country bread or Sour Dough, toasted or grilled and rubbed with garlic clove
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley, optional

Directions

1) Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.

2) Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven. Add the bacon and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the bacon is lightly browned. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon to a large plate.  (Refrain from sampling said bacon.)

3) Dry the beef cubes with paper towels and then sprinkle them with salt and pepper. In batches in single layers, sear the beef in the hot oil for 3 to 5 minutes, turning to brown on all sides.  (We got stew meat beef from our 1/8 of beef so I did 't have to chop anything.  However, I did pull some of the fat off - what a joke, this dish is LOADED with calories, a few more won't hurt!  The meat cooked much quicker because they were smaller than 1" cubes.) Remove the seared cubes to the plate with the bacon and continue searing until all the beef is browned. Set aside.

There was a ton of prep work - I made good use of Owen's nap :)

4) Toss the carrots, and onions, 1 tablespoon of salt and 2 teaspoons of pepper in the fat in the pan and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions are lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the Cognac, stand back, and ignite with a match to burn off the alcohol. (I didn't stand back far enough and was quite startled by the flare up!  Be careful!)   Put the meat and bacon back into the pot with the juices. Add the bottle of wine plus enough beef broth to almost cover the meat. Add the tomato paste and thyme. Bring to a simmer, cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and place it in the oven for about 1 1/4 hours or until the meat and vegetables are very tender when pierced with a fork.

5) Combine 2 tablespoons of butter and the flour with a fork and stir into the stew. Add the frozen onions. (At my local grocery store, pearl onions only came in 12 oz. packages - so I had to buy two and measure out another 4 oz.  I thought it was a bit heavy on the onion and could swear Jeremy and I both smelled like onion the next day...)  Saute the mushrooms in 2 tablespoons of butter for 10 minutes until lightly browned and then add to the stew. Bring the stew to a boil on top of the stove, then lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Season to taste.

6) To serve, toast the bread in the toaster or oven. Rub each slice on 1 side with a cut clove of garlic. For each serving, spoon the stew over a slice of bread and sprinkle with parsley.

Amazing!!  Bon Appetit!

Actually, this is how I was able to get my Boeuf Bourguignon done - Give him a Swiffer and a dog crate and he is fine.

1 Year Later

Last year, over this very weekend, we took Owen on his first road trip!  Owen was so little.  He slept most of the day, made sweet sounds, didn't destroy my house every waking minute, didn't throw food, didn't freak out if I wouldn't let him run around in a crowd of hundreds...Ah, those were the days!  Look how peacefully he slept in the Moby! 

We visited some friends we knew in DC, who also had the fortune of moving to Kansas as well!  We made our way down to the Plaza Art Fair in Kansas City - what a great street fair!  Alas, we were not in the market for art, just the delish food (and margaritas!).  We miss you Matt and Katie!!

Towards the end of the day, it started to rain.  Can you see Owen's little outline under my coat?  Maybe I should see if he still fits under there?

Fast forward one year: look at that mischievous little monster!  He was plotting his escape.  Right after this photo was taken, the little monkey put on quite the show because he wanted to investigate.  Alas, we won.  But did we really??  He cried and was a bear for the next hour and a half.  BUT, he got to try his first Burnt Ends from Jack Stack and the ham out of some Bleu Balls!

 

Blue Balls are these tasty little fried treats - the "donut hole" version of Chicken Cordon Bleu.  I DO NOT LIKE HAM, Sam I AM, but these were delish!  What is not to like: fried goodness, ooey gooey swiss cheese, and some little hunks of meat.  Needless to say, Owen enjoyed this detour from his normal fair of steamed veggies, grilled chicken, and quinoa :)

This year we met up with some friends from the other Washington!  Unfortunately the inebriated fool we asked to take the picture missed the kids in the strollers...So excited the McKees are in town!  Amy and I used to play on a soccer team at Fort Lewis - Will and Andy were our biggest fans!   Welcome to Kansas!

Take a Hike

So around Labor Day the weather FINALLY broke and we definitely have been taking advantage of it!  We took Happy (isn't he so cute smiling up there with daddy??) for a hike on the Konza Prairie, just outside of town.  He LOVED it up there!  He spent most of the time kicking his little legs. And at one point he had a few rocks he was carrying with him in the pack - he is all about objects that fit perfectly in his little paws.

The trail is only about 2.7 miles and wanders through the Flint Hills - it was beautiful!  We saw a herd (is that what you call a bunch of deer?) galloping through the meadow below.  And some wild turkeys gobbling up on the hills.  Can't wait for Thanksgiving!

 There was a huge meadow of sunflowers!  They were beautiful!  The Wild Native Sunflower is the state flower of Kansas - instead of the more well-know sunflower with one giant head at the top of the stalk, this particular sunflower has TONS of flowers per stalk.  Absolutely beautiful!

When I finally gave the little man a lift, he spent some quality time playing with my hair.  It was kind of cute.  I know we have some sass and tantrums in the future, but at this phase it is so hard to see him as only ever being super adorable!

About half way through we took a water break.  Happy was all about daddy's water bottle - didn't drink a drop out of is own.  What is it with kiddos and drinking out of a cup that will drench them?

The surrounding farm land is quite beautiful - and it demonstrates how absolutely different our lives are here in Manhattan compared to Arlington!

Manhappening in the distance - it was quite a beautiful hike.  Can't wait to share it with our visitors!  And yes, people actually come to visit us in Kansas :)

Dinner and Dexter

 

 

Owen was pooped and didn't make it to Dinner with Dexter.  Veerrrryyyyy Disappointing.

I am very confused by this whole new blogger.  I was excited for the picture caption element, but it isn't quite what I thought it would be.  I thought it would be set apart and framed - not so much.  I am so impatient with learning new things on the computer so I usually just skip it and never figure it out...does this sound familiar to any other moms out there??

Anyfood, Jeremy and I have been having dinner dates with "Dexter" for the last three weeks and it is has been AWESOME.  Have you ever seen it?!?  It is SO GOOD.  I think the first three seasons are streamed on Netflix, but the last two we've had to wait each week for our disk.  When Friday rolls around we are so excited for Dinner and Dexter!

YUM.  Amazing date night dinner!  The three cheeses combined with the yummy dough and garlic oil was delish!

So for this week's dinner I made White Pizzas out of "Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics."  Why have I waited so stinking long?!  It was DELISH!!!  I am not a big baker, so making my own pizza dough was a stretch for me.  My sister and a girlfriend here in the Little Apple swear by the Pioneer Woman's pizza dough recipe - but I decided to go with Ina's recipe for the first go around.  Next I'll try Ree's!

White Pizzas with Arugula

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cups warm water (100 to 110 degrees)

2 packages dry yeast (I used one package of rapid rise and one of active dry because that is what I had...)

1 tablespoon honey

Good olive oil (I find this instruction from my dear friend Ina to be a bit snobby, how do you define "good" - is it by price or taste?  One is objective one is subjective.  Any ideas??)

4 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for kneading

Kosher salt

4 garlic cloves, sliced

5 sprigs fresh thyme

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Freshly ground black pepper

3 cups grated Italian Fontina Cheese (8 ounces)

1 1/2 cups grated fresh mozzarella (7 ounces) (I used buffalo mozzarella and just slices it and tore it)

11 ounces cream goat cheese such as Montrachet, crumbled

1/2 cup good olive oil

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

8 ounces baby arugula

Instructions

For the dough, combine the water, yeast, honey, and 3 tablespoons olive oil in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook.  (This was the first time I busted out my dough hook for my Kitchen Aid - which I've owned for about 5 years or so.  If you've never used your dough hook, you are only supposed to use it at speed 2!) When the yeast is dissolved, add 3 cups of the flour, then 2 teaspoons salt and mix on medium-low speed.  While mixing, add up to 1 more cup of flour or just enough to make a soft dough.  (I never got "soft" dough - I may have added too much flour or maybe it was the mixed yeast?!  Any bakers with any insight??)  Knead the dough for about 10 minutes until smooth, sprinkling it with the flour as necessary to keep it from sticking to the bowl.  When the dough is ready, turn it out on floured board and knead it by hand a dozen times.  It should be sooth and elastic.  Place the dough in a well-oiled bowl and turn it to cover it lightly with oil.  Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and allow the dough to rise at room temperature for 30 minutes.  (I checked with Pioneer Woman, and she lets it rise for much longer, in fact, she said the longer the better.  After 30 minutes it appeared as if my dough hadn't risen.  So I waited about an hour and it was much "higher.")

Meanwhile, make the garlic oil.  Place 1/2 cup olive oil, the garlic, thyme, and red pepper flakes in a small saucepan and bring a simmer over low heat.  Cook for 10 minutes, making sure the garlic doesn't burn.  Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.  (Ina warns to make sure your oven is clean.  Mine was not, nor has it been since we moved in.  I need to get on it...so instead we grilled our pizzas: rub each side with olive oil.  Grill on one side for 1-2 minutes.  Place toppings on the previously grilled side.  Grill for 7-8 minutes more - delish!)

Dump the dough onto a board and dived it into 6 each pieces.  Place them on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and voer them with a damp towel.  Allow the dough to rest for 10 minutes.  Use immediately, or refrigerate for up to 4 hours.  (I froze my remaining dough - I will report back how the defrosted dough works!)

Press and stretch each ball into an 8-inch circle and place 2 circles on each parchment-lined sheet pan.  (If you have chilled the dough, take it out of the fridge 30 minutes ahead to let it come to room temperature.)  Brush the pizzas with the garlic oil, and sprinkle each one liberally with salt and pepper.  Sprinkle the pizza evenly with Fontina, mozzarella, and goat cheese.  Drizzle each pizza with 1 tablespoon more of the garlic oil and bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until the crusts are crisp and the cheeses begin to brown.

Meanwhile, for the vinaigrette, whisk together 1/2 cup of the olive oil, the lemon juice, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.  When the pizzas are done, place the arugula in a large bowl and toss with just enough lemon vinaigrette to moisten.  Place a large bunch of arugula on each pizza and serve immediately.

Bon Appetit!

We got a shipment of Flip Disposable Inserts (love!) and Owen spent some time in a Diaper Castle.

Mom Moment...

The question is whether it is a good mom moment, or a bad mom moment...It turns out I have moved about 4500 miles (WA to VA to KS) with several tins full of wine corks. Wha? I just recently found them at the back bottom shelf of my pantry. Originally I was just getting the tins out in an effort to entertain O - otherwise, he was headed to the curb with a "free" sign hanging around his neck. Anyhow, I found corks and it turns out that O loves to sort them...is it bad that I'm allowing him to play with what quite possibly could be hundreds of corks?? What does this say about my relationship to the sweet nectar of the gods??


I leave you with this final thought: this morning he greeted me with a cork sticking out of his mouth like a pacifier. Sweet. Don't call CPS on me.

Where's the beef?

Ha! So we bought 1/8 of a cow this summer. Actually, we just got it about a week ago, but we have already consumed 3 of our 81 pounds...I am positive that NO ONE in the Stephens abode is anemic at this point! I always wanted to buy a share of a cow, so when a friend of ours from small group mentioned that his parents were slaughtering a cow and wanted to sell it, we jumped on it! I think we are set with beef until the cows come home, bahahahahahahaahaha!


We got chuck, stew beef, tenderloin, cube steak, strip, etc., but as you can see from the first picture we got a ridiculous amount of ground beef. I busted out my America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook and started reviewing my ground beef options. Up until this point, I have been a ground turkey kind of girl, and all I've really made is one of the following: 1) tacos, 2) meatballs, or 3) hamburgers. So with about 40 pounds of ground beef it is time to mix it up!


First up: Tamale Pie! DELISH. Now, it sounds a bit comfort foodish, and it sort of is, but it was fairly healthy and we will be making it a bunch because it was SO GOOD.

Tamale Pie
Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 pound (90% lean - although I have no idea what the percentage is on our beef) ground beef
1 onion, minced
1 jalapeno chile, stemmed, seeded and minced (now, if you don't want your skin under your fingernails to burn, or your eyes (if you are like me and rub your eyes EVERY TIME you cut jalapenos), either wear gloves, or do what I did and use a vegetable bag as a glove as you cut, seed, etc.)
Salt
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon minced fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon dried
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (15.5 oz) can black beans, rinsed
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes (I used Rotel Original - nice and spicy!)
1 cup fresh or frozen corn
Pepper
2 1/2 cups water
3/4 cup coarse cornmeal
4 ounces (1 cup) Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (I used Pepper Jack - we like it hot in this house. Although I tried to feed O some of the cooked meat with the jalapeno and he was having NONE of it.)

* My mom said she grew up with Tamale Pie and my Gram always added olives - we love olives, so I think we'll throw a can in next time for a little saltiness.)

Instructions
1) Adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 375*. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a 12-inch skillet over high heat until just smoking. Add the ground beef and cook, breaking up large clumps, until just beginning to brown, about 4 minutes.

2) Stir in the onion, jalapeno, and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the chili powder, oregano, and garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the beans, the tomatoes and their juice, and corn and simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste, then set aside.

3) Bring the water to a boil in a large saucepan. Add 1/4 teaspoon salt and then slowly pour in the cornmeal while whisking vigorously to prevent clumping. Turn the heat to medium and cook, whisking constantly, until the cornmeal thickens, about 3 minutes. Stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons oil.

4) Stir the cheese into the beef mixture, then scrape into a deep-dish pie plate (or other 3-quart baking dish). Spread the cornmeal mixture over the top and seal against the edge of the dish. Cover with foil and bake until the crust has set and the pie is heated through, about 30 minutes. Let cool for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

Bon Appetite!

So Kansas is the Sunflower state if you weren't already aware of that fact. And that name is WELL deserved - at least in the Little Apple. We randomly have no less than four sunflower stalks that came up all on their own in our front yard, and they are COVERED in sunflowers! Alas, the heat of the summer was worth it :)